I wish I could tell you that this buttermilk pie recipe was passed down by my great, great grandmother, but it actually comes from a restaurant, “Lou’s Country Inn,” that my maternal grandmother loved to go to in the 1960’s.
My grandmother loved everything they made, especially their buttermilk pie, so when they put out a cook book she bought one immediately.
Turning to the dessert section my grandmother discovered that for Lou and Becky the buttermilk pie recipe wasn’t a family legacy either!
According to Lou, she and Becky wished one of them could claim it was her great, great grandmother’s recipe, but the truth was that Becky had originally found the recipe on the side of a buttermilk carton.
Over the years I’ve made some slight changes that I’ll include for y’all. Enjoy!
Kitchen equipment you need:
A 9 inch pie pan
An electric hand mixer
Here’s what you need for the crust:
1 cup all purpose flour
2 pinches of salt
Dusting of sugar
Sprinkle of cinnamon
1/3 cup Crisco vegetable shortening
4-6 tbsp. ice water (I usually use all 6. it’s good to stay hydrated)
Here’s how to make the crust:
I’m going to start with the crust recipe, for two reasons:
Obviously, you have to have a crust to pour the custard into, AND I think the secret to this pie turning out so mouthwatering is that it comes in a homemade crust.
Don’t be scared, it’s very easy. (First, pre-heat your oven to 375F)
Now that that’s done, mix the flour and salt together in a medium size bowl. This is where I also included a light dusting of sugar and a sprinkle of cinnamon.Cut the Crisco into the flour mixture with a fork, then sprinkle with your ice water. You want everything to incorporate and to have a very slight glisten. This is a dough that I like to over incorporate, so don’t be afraid you’re touching it too much. This is a tough Texas pastry crust.
Put your pastry dough on the flat side of a cutting board and roll it out. The color will be beige with spots of white, it won’t be all one color!
I am hardly ever able to roll out one perfect sheet of crust to place in my pie dish. I usually make one good piece, then piecemeal the rest together. You can’t tell the difference when it comes out of the oven. When you’re done, the dough should come up all the way to the lip of your pie dish.
Now, just let that beautiful baby rest while you make the filling.
Here’s what you need to make the filling:
1 stick melted salted butter
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
2 cap fulls of vanilla
Cinnamon
Here’s how to make the filling:Reuse the same bowl! Have an electric hand mixer ready. You can just use a big wooden spoon, but I really like to make sure the sugar gets fully incorporated.
Melt that butter!
Mix the sugar, flour, and salt together. Remember that melted butter? Pour that puppy all over your dry ingredients and stir it up. Add the eggs, vanilla, and BUTTERMILK, and mix well. You want this smooth and a pretty canary yellow color.
Pour your beautiful mixture into your adorable pie crust. The buttermilk mixture will reach dangerously close to the top of your dish! Don’t let it overflow, but don’t quit too soon. Get it close to the brim.
Lightly sprinkle cinnamon over the top of your pie and then insert a spoon into the center of the filling, slowly making larger and larger circles until you reach the outside edge. This will give it a pretty swirling effect.
Open your oven, still pre-heated to 375, and gently place your pretty pie on the center rack.
Blow it a kiss and shut the oven. Set a timer for one hour.At one hour, to check if your pie is done, insert a toothpick into the middle. The toothpick should come out clean. If it doesn’t come out smooth and clean, give it another 10 minutes.
Let the pie cool for an hour or so and then eat it voraciously, leaving none behind for anyone else.